All Elite Wrestling: Britain's Jamie Hayter on her journey to being women's champion

Paige Wooding, AKA Jamie Hayter (centre), has ascended the professional wrestling world from humble beginnings on the south coast of England

When Paige Wooding, better known by her ring name Jamie Hayter, became the first British woman to be crowned All Elite Wrestling (AEW) women's champion, her dream was finally realised.

Growing up near Southampton, she has come a long way to reach the top.

"It's been a long journey," she told BBC South Today.

"I always loved wrestling and said to myself I want to be a pro wrestler or a stunt person but I had no idea where to start.

"I didn't even know if there were any training schools near where I lived."

27-year-old Hayter grew up in Eastleigh near Southampton and it would be hard to call the area a hot bed for elite professional wrestling talent.

The town of approximately 139,000 people, has a shopping centre, railway station, small airport and its top sports team is the non-league football side Eastleigh FC.

Perhaps most famously, it is where the world-renowned World War Two Spitfire fighter plane first took to the skies.

"I got through school which sucked, I hated it, I didn't enjoy any of it," added Hayter.

"I worked just to make some money but it was always in the back of my mind that I just needed to find somewhere to learn how to wrestle professionally - to see if I liked it."

'I learned the basics like running-the-ropes'

A young and ambitious Hayter came close to diving in at the deep end and relocating to America to chase her dream.

But a quick search online changed her mind when she found a pair of wrestling schools 20 miles away.

Her journey into the world of pro wrestling was about to begin.

"At one point I was like, 'maybe I'll go to America and train at a school there for a few months' because I didn't even know if there was a pro wrestling school in the UK," she added.

"Then I found two in Portsmouth. I had no idea and I thought 'what the hell' that's only 40 minutes away.

"I went to a training week and my older brother came with me because I was scared of doing it on my own and he wanted to try it out as well.

"It was amazing that he came with me and it made me feel so much better about going.

"There was another training school literally over the road and I ended up joining that one later on. I learned the basics at the first school like running-the-ropes and doing bumps and at the second school I learned things like how to construct a match."

'Sorry we can't pay you'

Jamie Hayter (centre right) started out wrestling at local shows in community centres like this one in New Milton, Hampshire

Hayter grew into the pro-wrestling scene and performed at trainee shows in local community centres in front of a few dozen people.

Her name grew around the British independent scene and she was soon getting calls from promoters who wanted to book her on to their shows.

"I think back to all the strange places I wrestled," the 27-year-old mused in a video call from her hotel room in Texas.

"I remember wrestling in front of 10 people and going to a show and the guy was like 'sorry we can't pay you' and I thought 'what the hell this isn't right'.

"Then I came to AEW, it's grand with a big stage and it's on TV, and I do always think back to that moment - it's very humbling and I still can't believe this is real."

'This is my job now'

AEW is an American professional wrestling promotion that is considered the second-largest wrestling promotion in the US behind the dominant WWE.

It is owned by Shahid Khan who also owns the Premier League football team Fulham FC and the NFL franchise the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Hayter's arrival at AEW - following a stint wrestling in Japan - was her first big opportunity to showcase her skills to a global audience.

She continued: "I still get the same nerves and the same feelings as I did seven years ago when I first started, but it's on such a bigger scale.

"Any time I walk out and feel nervous I can't back away, this is my job now, and I have to go out there and perform.

"AEW is doing really well, America loves professional wrestling, and fans travel from all over to watch a show which is really great to see."

'I want to be one of the best'

Jaime Hayter (centre bottom) says now she is AEW Women's Champion she wants to be the best she can be in sports entertainment

12,000 of those dedicated fans were present when Hayter faced Toni Storm for the AEW Women's title on a cold November night in New Jersey just three weeks ago.

Hayter performed her signature clothesline to down her opponent in the centre of the ring and went for the pin.

A woman in one of the front rows of the arena waved a Union Jack flag as fans punched the air and counted 'one, two, three' with the referee and roared when Hayter was declared the winner to become the first British woman to lift the belt.

It is a moment that she will not forget any time soon.

"It was massive and such a validating feeling after you've worked so hard for so long, sacrificed a lot of things, moved countries multiple times and worked for little money," she said.

"Every single person who has held this belt has done their own thing with it, they've had their own matches, storylines and that's been great, I just want to add to that and be remembered as one of the best champions AEW ever had.

"Ultimately, when my career is over I want to be one of the best female professional wrestlers who ever stepped into the ring.

"I'm really enjoying the ride and think if I stopped wrestling I'd be really happy with how things have gone.

"It's not been the most conventional journey but I'm really happy with all of it - I don't have one complaint."